Marine power installation



April 24, 1928. 7' 1,667,475

' A. T. KASLEY MARINE POWER INSTALLATION Filed Avril .9 3 Sheets-Sheet 1WITNESSES: I INVENTOR AJ'. Kas l ey ATTORNEY April 24, 1928. 1,667,475

. A. T. KASLEY MARINE POWER INSTALLAHION Filed April 25. 1927 3Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR WITNESSES: AIlZKusky BY an 05 M ATTORNEY April24, 1928. 1 ,667,475

A. T. KASLEY MARINE POWER INSTALLATION Filed Avril 25. 1927 3Sheets-Sheet 3 WITNESSE S: INVENTOR 5. AIKusle BY Mam ATTORN EY PatentedApr. 24, 1928.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALEXANDER T. KASLEY, or MOQ EJENNSYLV NIA, ASSIGNOR 'ro WESTINGHOUSEMacrame MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION or PENNSYLVANIA.

.. MABINE'POWER INSTALLATION.

Application filed April 25, 1927. Serial No. 186,361.

My invention relates to power developing apparatus, more particularly tomarine propulsion systems, and has for its object the provision ofapparatus of the character designated which is capable of developingrelatively high power and which may be readily installed in a limitedspace in a vessel. 1 i

More specifically, the object of my invention is to provide means fortransmitting power from one or more internal combustion engine units,each embodying a closed series of cylinders defining a polyhedron, to apropeller shaft in such a manner that the engines may be arranged withrespect to the ships structure so as to occupy a minimum of space.

Apparatus embodying features ofmy invention is illustrated in'theaccompanying drawings forming a part ofthis specification. wherein:

Fig. 1 is a plan view showing my improved marine propulsion systemasapplied to a p; f i

Fig. 2 is an elevational view ofthe apparatus shown in'Fig. 1 with partsof the ships hull broken away; 1 i

Fig. 3 is an end elevational view, partly in section, of the gearingemployed with one of the en-ginennits according to my invention; 1

Figs. 4 and 5 are diagrammatic views showing the arrangement of gearsfor other positions of the engine units with respect to the ships hull;and,

Figs. 6 and 7 are diagrammatic views of the arrangement of gears.according to my invention as applied to a six-sided and an eight-sidedengine, respectively.

Mv invention is particularly applicable to marine installationsemploying internal combustion engine units having cylinders arranged todescribe a polyhedron and of the type disclosed in the applicationHerbert T. Herr. Serial No. 86,494, filed February 6, 1926. and assignedto the Westinghouse El'cc. & Mfg. Company, although it will'be apparentthat it may be employed with equal facility with other types of engines.'With engines of the character described in the aforesaid application,the cylinders surround the propeller shaft with the shaft disposedcentrally of the polyhedral frame of the engine and power from thecylinders is trans- "HnssuEn mitted tothe propeller shaft through theintermediary of suitable gearing.

\Vhile such an installation is ideal from the point of view ofgenerating and trans- -mitting power, I have found that in marineinstallations, wherein thepropeller shafts are inclined rearwardly andoutwardly .of the vessel, the dispositions of aplural'ity of suchengines with their cylinders around the propeller shaft may takeup'considerable, much needed room. My invention therefore consistsprimarily in a system of gearing for engines of the character describedwherebythe point at which power is transmitted from the engine to thepropeller shaft may be located in various positions with respect to theaxis of the engine frame. More specifically, I transmit, power fromthe.engine cylinders to the propeller shaft through a system ofgearingincluding idler gears, I

in such a manner that the major portion of the engine frame may be solocated with respect to the propeller shaft as to accommodate itself tothe ships structure and thus take up a minimum of room. 7

Referring now tov the drawings for a betterunderstanding of myinvention, I show, in Figs. 1 and 2,a fragment of shipsstructureincluding side structure 10 and bottom structure 11. The vesselis propelled'by a pair of propellers 12 and 13, said propellers beinginclined rearwardly and outwardly fromthe'vessel. Each of the propellersis driven from a' plurality of polyhedral engine units such as 16, 17"and.18, all geared to a common propeller shaft 19. It will be notedfrom a consideration of Figs. 1 and 2 that the engine units 16, 17 and18, as well as the associated units driving the propeller 13 are soarranged with respect to their respective propeller shafts that theyarerelatively closely spaced with respect to the ships side and bottom.Referring now to Fig. 3, each of the-engine units comprises a closedseries of similar cylinders such as 21, 22, 23 and 24, In each of thecylinders are a pair of opposed pistons such as 26 and 27. A piston ofboth the cylinders 24 and 26 is connected to a common crank shaft'28 andthe piston 27 and a cooperating piston in the cylinder 22 are connectedto a common crank shaft 29. Likewise, the pistons of the cylinder 23 areconnected to crank shafts, with the remainthe propeller shaft ingpistons of the cylinders 22 and 24' (not shown). It will be seen fromthe foregoing that the cylinders 21, 22, 22 and 24 comprise a polyhedronhaving crank shafts at the vertices thereof.

Connected to the crank shafts of. the cngineare four driving gears 31,32, 33 and 34 whicl'i transmit power developed in the cylinders to adriven gear S6 connected to 19, the propeller shaft being positioned bymeans of bearings 37, shown in dotted lines behind the driven gear 36,and suitably secured to a plate .member 38 which a part of the engineframe.

The propeller shaft may partly support.

the engine. In the example shown, the engine is at least partlysupported from the ships bottom structure as by means of suitablesupports 41 and 42. It will be noted from a consideration of Fig. 3 thatshould the engine be so located with respect to the propeller shaft 19that the shaft would be centrally of the engine frame axis, that theengine would occupy a position more to the left of that shownv in thefigure and would thus probably interfere with the positioning of theengines on the other side of the vessel. Furthermore, it would leavevacant a space near the ships hull, toward the right of the figure,which would serve no useful purpose.

It is to overcome this peculiar difficulty that my invention isparticularly directed. In order that the engine may occupy a position asclose to the side and bottom structure of the vessel as may bedesirable, I interpose between the driving gears 29 and 33, and thedriven gear-36, a pair of idler gears 43 and 44. The power from thegears 31. and 34 is transmitted directly to the driven gear 36, whilepower from the gears 32 and 33 is transmitted through the idler gears 43and 44. The eifect of the idler gears 43 and 44 is to displace theengine frame with respect to the propeller shaft so that it may be moreclosely located with respect to the ships side and bottom. It willfurthern'iore be apparent from Fig.3, that my improved gearing meanspermits the inclination of the engine with respect to the horizontal sothat it may more readily conform to the ships side.

In Fig. 4, I show, diagrammatically, the arrangement of gears for theengine 16. In this view driving gears 51 and 52 transmit power to adriven gear 53 through the intermediary of a pair of idler gears 54 and56, while driving gears 57 and 58 transmit power directly to the driven.gear 53. With this arrangement, the propeller shaft is located in aposition with respect to the engine frame 19, below the axis of theengine frame.

In Fig. 5, I show an arrangement of gearing for the engine, similar tothat in Fig. 3, but wherein it is not necessary to tilt the engine framein order to accommodate it to the ships side such as is shown in Fig. 3.In this figure, driving gears 61 and 62 transmlt power to a driven gear63 through the 'intemediary of idler gears 64 and 66, while drivinggears 67 and 68 transn'iit power directly to the driven gear From theexamples given, it will be plain that this improved gearing arrangementmay be so applied to an engine of the character described intransmitting power to the propeller shaft, that the engine frame may belocated in a variety of positions with respect to the propeller shaftand so as to accommodate the engine structure to the space allotted.

In Fig. 6, I show diagrammaticallya polyhedral engine comprising aclosed series of cylinders 71, 72, 73, 74, and 76. The pistons withinthe cylinders 71 and 7 6 inclusive are connected to driving gears 81,82, 83, 84, and 86, respectively. In the example shown, the driving gear82 transmits power to a driven gear 88 through the intermediary of anidler gear 89, while the driving gears 81 and 86 mesh directly with thedriven gear 88. The driving gear 85 transmits power to a driven gear 89through the intermediary of an idler gear 91, while the driving gears 84and 83 mesh "directly with the driven gear 89, and the driven gear 89meshes with the driven gear 88. In the arrangement of gearing such as ishere shown, power may be transmitted from the engine through either ofthe driven gears 88 or 89 and the shaft for either of these gears may beincluded in the propeller shaft.

In Fig. 7, I show yet another modification of my invention whereinthereis employed a polyhedral engine embodying a closed series of eightcylinders 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107 and 108. The cylinders 101to 108 transmit power through a series of driving gears 109, 110, 111,112, 113, 114, 115, and 116, respectively. The driving gears 111 and 112mesh directly with a driven gear 121 while the driving gears and.113transmit power to the driven gear 121 through the intermediary of idlergears 122 and 123. The driving gears 115 and 116 transmit power directlyto a driven gear 124'which meshes with the driven gear 121, while thedriving gears 114 and 109 transmit power to the driven gear 124 throughthe intermediary of idler gears 126 and 127.- In this arrangement thepower from the engine may be transmitted through either of the drivengears 121 or 124 and the propeller shaft may be located coincidentalwith the shaft of either of these gears. With either arrangement, itwill be seen that the major portion of the engine frame will be to oneside of the propeller shaft and that the engine may be so disposed in aships hull as to accom modate itself to the space allotted.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent ltlTi that I have devised anilnproved marine prop-ulsion system, whereby the power units of suchsystems may be the most advantageously disposed with respect'to theships piopeller shaft and the ships structure.

IVhile I have shown my invention in several forms, it will be obvious tothose skilled internalcombustion engine unit encompass ing the propellershaft, gearing means transmittmg power from the engine unit to thepropeller shaft, and means for offsetting the engine unit with respectto -the propeller shaft.

2. In a marine power installation, the

combination of a propeller shaft, a polyhedral internal combustionengine unit encompassing the propeller shaft, gearing means fortransmitting power from the engine unit to the propeller shaft, andmeans included in the gearing means for varying the angular relation ofthe engine unit with respect to the propeller shaft.

8. In a marine power installation, the combination of a propeller shaft,a polyhedral internal combustion engine unit encompassing the propellershaft, gearing means for transmitting power from the engine unit to thepropeller shaft, means included in the gearing means for varying theangular rela-v tion of the engine unit with respect to the propellershaft, and means for supporting the engine unit on the propeller shaftand for establishing the relations of the gear means.

i. In a. marine power installation, the

combination of a propeller shaft, a plurality of polyhedral internalcombustion engine units each encompassing the propeller shaft, gearingmeans for transmitting power from the engine units to the propellershaft, and means included in the gearing means for offsetting the engineunits with respect to the propeller shaft.

5. In a marine power installation, the combination of a propeller shaft,a plurality of polyhedral internal combustion engine units eachencompassing the propeller shaft,

and gearing means for transmitting power from the engine units to thepropeller shaft, and means included in the gearing means for varying theangular relations of the engine units with respect to the propellershaft.

6. In a marine power installation, the combination of a propeller shaft,a plurality of polyhedral internal combustion engine units eachencompassing the propeller shaft, gearing means for transmitting powerfrom the engine units to the propeller shaft, means included in thegearing means for varying the angular relations of the engine units withrespect to the propeller shaft, and means for supporting each engineunit on the propeller shaft and for establishing the respectiveIelations of the gear means.

7. In a marine power installation, the coinbin'a'tion'of a propellershaft, a plurality of polyhedral internal combustion engine units eachencompassing the propeller shaft, a driven gear on the propeller shaft,a plurality of driving gears carried by each engine unit some of whichmesh with the driven gear, and idler gears int-erpo'sedbetween the otherdriving gears and the driven gear.

8. In a marine power installation, the combination of a propeller shaft,-'a plurality of I polyhedral internal combustion engine units eachencon'ipassing the propeller shaft, a

driven gear on the propellershaft, a plural-- ity of driving gearscarried by each engine unit some of which mesh with the driven gear, andidler gears interposed between the other driving gears and the drivengear, an engine frame uni-textending transversely of the propellershaft, and a bearing member carried by the engine frame unit andcooperating with the propeller shaft.

9. In a marine power installation, the combination of a. propellershaft, a plurality of polyhedral internal combuaion engine unitsfor/driving the propeller shaft, said engine units each encompassing thepropellershaft, a plurality of crank shafts embodied in each engineunit, gearing means for transmitting power from each of the crank shaftsto the propeller shaft, and means included in the last-mentioned meansfor offsetting each of the engine units with respect to the propellershaft.

lOrIn a marine power installation, the combination of a propeller shaft,a plurality of polyhedral internal combustion engine units for'drivingthe propeller shaft, said engine units each encompassing the propellershaft, a plurality of crank shafts embodied in each engine unit, gearingmeans for transmitting power from each of the crank shafts to thepropeller shaft, and means included in the last-mentioned meanseffective to offset each of the engine units with respect to thepropeller shaft and with respect to each other.

11. In a marine power installation, the combination of a propellershaft, a plurality of polyhedral internal combustion engine units fordriving the propeller shaft, said engine units each encompassing thepropeller shaft, a plurality of crank shafts, embodied loo to thepropeller shaft, and 'n'ieans included in the last-mentioned means foroffsetting each of the engine units with respect to the propeller shaft.

l2. In a marine power installation, the combination of a, propellershaft, a plurality of polyhedral internal coml'mstion engine units fordriving the propeller shaft, said engine units each encompassing thepropeller shaft, a plurality of cram: shafts embodied in each engineunit, gearing means for transmitting power from each of the crankshaftsto the propeller shaft, and means included in the last-mentioned meansfor offsetting each of the engine units with. respect to the propellershaft, and with respect to each other.

13. In a marine power installation, the combination of a propellershaft, a plurality of polyhedral internalcombustion engine units fordriving: the propeller shaft, said engine units each encompassing); thepropel ler shaft, a plurality of crank shafts embodied in each engineunit, gearing means for transmitting; power from each of the crankshafts to the propeller shaft, and means included in the last-mentionedmeans for oilsettine' each ofthe engine units with. respect to thepropeller shaft and with respect to each other and for varying theangular relation of the several engine units with respect to each other.

14. In a marine propulsion system, the combination of a propeller shaft,a plurality of internal combustion engine units for driving thepropeller shaft, a closed series of cylinders defining a polyhedronincluded in each of the engines and encompassing the propeller shaft,opposed. pistons in each of the cylinders, a crank shaft, at each vertexof the polyhedron and connected'to adjacent pistons, a driving gearcarried by each of the crank shafts, a driven gear -arried by thepropeller shaft and meshing directly with some of the driving gears, andidler gears between the driven gear and the remaining driving gears. r

15. In a marine power installation, the con'ibination of a polyhedralinternal combustion engine unit having, a plurality of parallel crankshafts arranged at corners of the polyhedron, a propeller shaft arrangedso that its axis intersects a polygon defined by the crank shaft axes,and gearing for transmitting power from the crank shafts to thepropeller shaft and providing for offset-- ting of the engine unit with:respect to the propeller shaft. e

16. In a marine power installation, the combination of a polyhedralinternal combustion engine unithaving a plurality of parallel er: 11kshafts arranged at corners of the polyhedron, a propeller shaft havingits axis so arranged that it intersects a polygon defined by the crankshaft axes, gears carried by the crank shafts, propeller shaft gearmeans meshing with some of said crank shaft gears, and idler gearsarranged between the remaining crank shaft gears and the pro pellershaft gear means.

In testimony whereof, I have hereuntosubscribed my name April, 1927.

ALEXANDER 'r. nastier this nineteenth day of

